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It all began in the spring of 2012 when a friend posted on Facebook she had registered for American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure in Rochester, NY. Tour de Cure is a series of fundraising cycling events nationwide. Rhonda Voight-Campbell thought to herself that she had no excuse but to join this great cause and raise money to find a cure for Diabetes. Rhonda had gestational diabetes at age 32 and 34, experienced diabetic kinoacidosis (DKA) in 2008, and was later diagnosed with LADA - latent autoimmune diabetes in adults, a slow onset type 1 diabetes.
However, Rhonda faced a dilemma. She is Deaf-blind and cannot ride alone due to her low vision. Rhonda needed a tandem bike partner/guide in order to participate in Tour de Cure. Arlene Sankey stepped up to the plate, already with many demands of her time, and decided to help her very good friend to attain Rhonda's goal to join the fight against Diabetes. They had so much fun training together and have participated in Tour de Cure ever since, and this year is their 4th time.
Their biggest challenge is finding a tandem bike to train and ride on for the annual Tour de Cure event. Their personal dream is to own a road tandem bike. Then, Rhonda and Arlene could go biking year-round to remain healthy and fit. Being more active helps lower one's blood sugar and helps keep diabetes under control.
Rhonda and Arlene have found a road tandem bike (Co-Motion Primera 2013) in stock at a local bike shop, and the price tag is $3,785, which has proven to be cost-prohibitive to their dream. They test rode the bike and fell in love with it. The bike is light-weight and easy to maneuver, which is PERFECT for long-distance tours. Plus, it is RED! (Tour de Cure participants who have diabetes are called Red Riders)
Rhonda's hope is that being a Red Rider will encourage her team members and others become more aware about Diabetes and its deadly consequences. Thus, they would take control in leading better, healthier lifestyles.
Thanks to the collaboratioon with Lauren Lieberman for loaning Rhonda and Arlene a tandem bike to meet their goals to ride and support ADA at Tour de Cure for the past few years. It has come to the point where even that collaboration has become a challenge and the dream of having a tandem bike of their own has developed into a stronger need to become a reality. Make a contribution to help Rhonda and Arlene get their dream bike and ride the extra mile in their fight against Diabetes!
However, Rhonda faced a dilemma. She is Deaf-blind and cannot ride alone due to her low vision. Rhonda needed a tandem bike partner/guide in order to participate in Tour de Cure. Arlene Sankey stepped up to the plate, already with many demands of her time, and decided to help her very good friend to attain Rhonda's goal to join the fight against Diabetes. They had so much fun training together and have participated in Tour de Cure ever since, and this year is their 4th time.
Their biggest challenge is finding a tandem bike to train and ride on for the annual Tour de Cure event. Their personal dream is to own a road tandem bike. Then, Rhonda and Arlene could go biking year-round to remain healthy and fit. Being more active helps lower one's blood sugar and helps keep diabetes under control.
Rhonda and Arlene have found a road tandem bike (Co-Motion Primera 2013) in stock at a local bike shop, and the price tag is $3,785, which has proven to be cost-prohibitive to their dream. They test rode the bike and fell in love with it. The bike is light-weight and easy to maneuver, which is PERFECT for long-distance tours. Plus, it is RED! (Tour de Cure participants who have diabetes are called Red Riders)
Rhonda's hope is that being a Red Rider will encourage her team members and others become more aware about Diabetes and its deadly consequences. Thus, they would take control in leading better, healthier lifestyles.
Thanks to the collaboratioon with Lauren Lieberman for loaning Rhonda and Arlene a tandem bike to meet their goals to ride and support ADA at Tour de Cure for the past few years. It has come to the point where even that collaboration has become a challenge and the dream of having a tandem bike of their own has developed into a stronger need to become a reality. Make a contribution to help Rhonda and Arlene get their dream bike and ride the extra mile in their fight against Diabetes!